By Devjyot Ghoshal, Francesco Guarascio and Poppy McPherson (Reuters) -When weeks of tensions escalated into a major border conflict with Thailand last week, former Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen appeared to take charge of his country's response.

As thousands of displaced people in both Cambodia and Thailand begin to venture home, some are discovering the personal cost of the nearly week-long clash which has resulted in the deaths of at least 41 people and displaced more than 260,